


Traditional obligation

by Melacka



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Book/Movie 2: Catching Fire, F/M, Family Bonding, Holidays, Katniss is awkward, Light Angst, Longing, Peeta is charming, Pining, Post-Victory Tour
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 10:23:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17078537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Melacka/pseuds/Melacka
Summary: The Everdeens invite Peeta over for New Years Eve and Katniss muses on the nature of tradition and obligation.





	Traditional obligation

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JavisTG](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JavisTG/gifts).



> A gift for JavisTG, I hope you like it!
> 
> The prompt was: The Victory Tour is over. Katniss and Peeta are engaged and, more importantly, they're becoming friends. What happens when Peeta is invited to spend New Year's Eve with the Everdeens?

Katniss trudged through the fresh snow towards Peeta’s house, rehearsing what she was going to say. Her mother had been hinting for days that she should invite him over for New Year’s Eve and she had dodged every time, worried about Peeta and Gale being forced into close proximity with each other. Eventually, her mother had simply ordered her to go over and invite him to spend the evening with them. Katniss had been surprised at her persistence, especially as none of them had been feeling particularly celebratory lately, but she had finally agreed when her mother informed her that no one else was coming over. Mrs Everdeen was eager to include Peeta in their lives more and more since their very public engagement, and Katniss could hardly argue against it. Her relationship with her mother was complicated at the best of times, she didn’t really want to have to discuss the complexities of her relationship with Peeta as well.

So there she was, awkwardly standing on Peeta’s doorstep and hoping for inspiration. Sighing in exasperation, she knocked loudly on the door and shifted impatiently from foot to foot as she waited. She tried to soften her face into a more neutral expression than her habitual scowl as she heard him approach. He opened the door and smiled in greeting, even if he was clearly surprised to see her there.

“Katniss, hi,” he said, wiping his hands on a towel. “What’s up?”

“Do you want to come over for dinner?” she said gruffly without preamble.

“What, now?” Peeta replied, obviously confused.

“No, tomorrow night. You know, for New Year?”

“Oh.”

“You don’t have to,” Katniss said in a rush. “It’s just going to be us, no one else.”

“Just us?” he said with a smirk. “Katniss Everdeen, are you asking me out on a date?”

“No!” she barked and then blushed when he laughed. “I meant it will just be me, Prim and my mother.” She paused awkwardly for a moment before adding, “And you, if you want to come.”

He grinned at her and she scowled at him in silence while she awaited his response.

“Don’t feel like you’re obliged, or anything,” she said when she couldn’t stand the silence any longer. “But if you’d like to come—”

“I’d love to come, Katniss,” he said quietly. “Thanks for inviting me.”

“Oh,” she said, a little taken aback. “Well, good.”

“Good,” Peeta echoed with a smile.

Katniss felt an answering smile start to tug at her the corners of her mouth and she bit her lip to stop it.

“I’ll go let my mother know.”

“Tell her I’m really looking forward to it,” Peeta said cheerfully. “New Year with the Everdeens sounds perfect.”

Katniss briefly wondered if he said that for the benefit of some hidden Capitol surveillance but dismissed the thought and simply grinned back at him.

“See you tomorrow, then,” she said as she turned away.

“It’s a date!” he said loudly and then laughed when she whipped around to glare at him. “Bye, Katniss!”

* * * * *

Before she became a Victor, New Year was just a time for a quiet celebration amongst themselves. She'd always tried to get something special together in the way of food and maybe save up some money to buy a present for Prim. This was one celebration she could always understand, one she was eager to participate in. To her, it was a celebration of them all surviving another year. She hadn't failed them, they were all still alive.

This would be the first New Year since she became a Victor and there were subtle differences in the way they were celebrating. It wasn't just that they had money and food to spare this time, there was a lightness in her mother and a happiness in Prim that Katniss hadn't seen in years. It must be because they didn't realise just how precarious their situation was, how carefully balanced their safety was. The smallest mistake on any of their parts could send them crashing into oblivion.

Prim seemed genuinely excited about Peeta coming over, as well. She wanted to get to know him, probably under the assumption that he would be her brother before too long. Katniss had no desire to open her eyes to that particular reality, so she left her to enjoy the pleasant anticipation of a harmonious family life. The joy in the possibilities of a happy ending.

Katniss mainly contributed to their preparations by running errands and staying out of the way. She went hunting early in the day and, after dropping her haul off at home, was sent to town armed with a very specific list from her mother and some stern instructions from Prim about what she was supposed to buy. She went from shop to shop, spreading out her purchases as much as she could and buying things she would never have dreamed of wasting money on before. Reminding herself that the expense meant nothing to her but could be the difference between eating and starving to people in the District, Katniss was as lavish as she could be. It didn’t come naturally to her, however, and she felt like a fool walking around with bags of ribbons and jars of sweets.

She stopped off to see the Hawthorns and give them some gifts from her mother. Gale wasn’t at home, which was a relief. She didn’t need that confrontation today. She had other things to worry about. She gave them as much food as she thought they would accept and some warm clothes for the coming winter. She knew that she would have trouble accepting such a gift but was grateful that Hazelle was pragmatic. She took what Katniss gave in the spirit it was offered and with many well-wishes and a hope to see them all on the morrow, Katniss headed home.

Her mother and Prim were in charge of preparing the food, and Katniss took a moment to appreciate the smell of the house when she returned in the afternoon. There was far too much food for just the four of them and Katniss fought her instinctive urge to scold them about wasting it. She knew that anything they didn’t eat tonight would be heated up the next day and that there were always hungry people in the Seam who could be persuaded to accept a meal from them. Old habits clearly die hard, though, and Katniss distracted herself by tidying up their nearly spotless house. She moved from room to room, looking for things to do.

About half an hour before Peeta was due to arrive, Katniss realised that she was just moving around the house, rearranging things seemingly at random. She didn’t know what was wrong with her, but she was feeling oddly nervous about the whole thing. She saw her mother and Prim exchange smiles in the kitchen and scowled in response, assuming that they were amused by her uncharacteristic behaviour. She huffed and sat down in a corner, prepared to simply wait in silence for Peeta to join them.

“Katniss, why don’t you run upstairs and get dressed? We can finish up here.”

Katniss looked at her mother in surprise and then down at what she was wearing.

“What’s wrong with this?” she said, annoyed. “It’s only us—”

“It’s the first time Peeta is coming over for a family dinner,” her mother replied sternly. “It’s a special occasion, at least put on a fresh set of clothes.”

Katniss rolled her eyes but left the room to obey anyway. Her mother was right, under normal circumstances, this _would_ be a special occasion, and she didn’t really want to get into a fight over something that ultimately didn’t matter. She wanted the evening to go well, it seemed to really matter to her mother. If she was honest with herself, she could admit that she wanted Peeta to see them at their best. He’d certainly seen _her_ at her worst often enough, but she wanted him to like her family, especially Prim. She knew that there was very little chance that they wouldn’t get along well, they were both so _nice_ and their loyalty to her would ensure that they would do their best to get along with each other. Even knowing this, Katniss was nervous and annoyed with herself for feeling that way over a dinner, of all things.

Katniss took a quick shower and contemplated what she should wear. Her mother and Prim were both wearing dresses even though it was freezing outside. They were well protected from the cold in this house, of course, but it still felt odd to Katniss to wear anything other than her warmest, most comfortable clothes in such horrible weather. She compromised by wearing her nicest pair of pants that didn't come from the Capitol and a warm sweater in a nice green colour. She braided her hair back as normal before changing her mind and waving it loose again. She stepped into a pair of comfortable slippers and left her room to join the others downstairs.

She paused at the top of the stairs when she heard a knock at the door. Prim skipped lightly over to answer it and Katniss couldn’t help but smile at the sight. She watched on with a fond sense of pride as Prim greeted Peeta, smiling and blushing prettily when he handed her a covered plate, which turned out to hold one of the fancy iced cakes Prim had always admired so much.

“Thank you!” Prim said happily as Katniss joined them at the door. “Katniss, look!”

Katniss leaned forward obediently to admire the delicate icing and beautiful pattern of primroses that Peeta had used to decorate the cake. He must have made it specially for tonight and she looked at him with a smile, before returning her attention to the cake.

“Take it into the kitchen, Little Duck,” she said after she felt she had admired it long enough. “We’ll have it after dinner.”

Prim directed one more admiring smile at Peeta before she walked away, carefully cradling the treat in her hands.

“You’ve just made her night, you know,” Katniss murmured, still watching Prim walk away.

“I aim to please,” he replied simply. “I remembered you said that she loved the cakes and I’ve got no one else to bake for now.”

Katniss glanced at him quickly and he quirked a sad little smile at her before turning to greet her mother.

“Good evening, Mrs Everdeen,” he said politely as she walked forward with a hand outstretched in greeting.

“Good evening, Peeta. I’m so glad you could join us, especially on such short notice.”

“The pleasure’s mine,” Peeta said earnestly. “Thank you for inviting me.” He held out a basket covered with a thick cloth and she took it with a smile. “My parents send their regards and best wishes for a happy new year.”

Katniss just barely contained her snort of disbelief at that. Something told her that Peeta’s mother knew nothing about the _regards_ she was sending them, let alone the basket filled with the best bakery items that District 12 had to offer. Luckily, Mrs Everdeen was clearly able to receive this blatant lie with much more grace than Katniss could muster.

“Thank you,” she said as she gestured for them to move towards the kitchen. “Please pass on our thanks and regards to your parents when you see them next.”

Katniss and Peeta exchanged an amused glance as they followed her.

“You look nice,” Peeta murmured quietly.

“Thanks,” she said awkwardly and then after a moment added, “You too.”

“There’s that famous Everdeen charm!” he replied with a laugh and dashed away from her before she could land her half-hearted punch to his arm.

* * * * *

The actual meal went a lot smoother than Katniss expected it to. Peeta was personable and charming as always, helping to carry the conversation whenever a lull threatened to derail it. He coaxed her mother to talk about her Merchant days and delighted Prim with stories of the Victory Tour. Katniss had barely managed to drum up the enthusiasm required to talk about anything other than the food when they’d returned, so traumatic had their experience been. But Peeta seemed to remember in graphic detail things that she could have sworn they hadn’t seen, weaving exciting stories about Districts that she could barely remember and keeping Prim absolutely captivated.

When Katniss fell silent for too long, he gently encouraged her to join the conversation by talking about safe topics and then made them all laugh with this impression of Effie herding them from place to place. At one point, Katniss found herself thinking, _This is it. This is what my life could be_. Quiet evenings spent together, sharing food and making each other laugh. Katniss could see her mother warming up to Peeta and Prim was already prepared to love him, if only for Katniss’ sake. She sighed deeply and Peeta looked at her in concern. She forced a smile and nodded reassuringly at him, before turning her attention back to Prim, who was telling a story about Buttercup. _Don’t think about it,_ she told herself fiercely. She couldn’t hope for a happy life, only a safe one. If she was lucky.

* * * * *

They talked about walking into town to attend some of the celebrations there, but Katniss wasn’t keen. The snow was light but persistent, and she never looked forward to the attention she and Peeta received when they were in public together. She did think that she should go and check on Haymitch at some point, make sure that he made it through the night. She also thought that it would be nice to walk down to the see the remains of the big bonfire she knew would be burning in the town with Prim. Maybe Peeta would join them for that as well, but that was for later. Now, she wanted to stay right where she was.

As it got closer to midnight, Peeta started taking Prim through the steps of some of the dances they’d learned in the Capitol. They didn’t have any music, but he still managed to twirl her around the room with a practiced ease that Katniss couldn’t hope to emulate. Prim giggled as they spun, holding on tightly keep up with him and looking perfectly happy. Katniss and her mother clapped loudly when they stopped and Peeta acknowledged the applause with a bow and a smile.

“Feel like a spin, Katniss?” Peeta asked, slightly breathless as Prim joined her mother in front of the fire.

“Uh – well, I –” she stuttered.

“Come on,” he said coaxingly. “Let’s farewell the year with a little fun, huh?”

“Fun?” she said sceptically, taking his outstretched hand and allowing him to draw her in to the circle of his arms. “Dancing isn’t fun for me, Peeta.”

“We’ll find a way, Katniss,” he said quietly as he began to lead her around in small circles. “Just trust me.”

She smiled tightly at him and tried not to think about anything at all as they danced. After a few moments, Peeta began humming quietly and she let herself lean in a little closer, relaxing a fraction. _This is how it could be_. She saw her mother and Prim start to mimic their movements and soon they were all dancing to Peeta’s tuneless humming. Katniss closed her eyes and finally let herself rest her head against Peeta’s shoulder. _This is how it could be._

Katniss lost all track of time as she let Peeta lead her around the room and was shocked when her mother suddenly cried out.

“It’s past midnight!” she said, looking at the clock. “Happy new year!”

Katniss reluctantly leaned back from Peeta and looked at him, almost guiltily. She hadn’t meant to get so close to him, didn’t want him to think she was leading him on or anything.

“Happy new year, Katniss,” he said quietly, his arms still looped gently around her.

“Happy new year, Peeta,” she whispered, struggling desperately to regain control of herself.

“Happy new year!” Prim called out joyfully, coming up to hug Katniss.

“Happy new year,” Katniss echoed, stepping away from Peeta and hugging her tight.

Prim turned to Peeta and smiled shyly as she moved to hug him as well, while Katniss accepted a hug from her mother.

 “Are you two going to kiss?” Prim asked innocently, standing in between Katniss and Peeta.

“What?” Katniss sputtered indignantly. “Prim!”

“It’s traditional, at New Years,” Prim explained, looking confused at her outburst. “My teacher told me.”

“She’s right, Katniss,” her mother interjected gently. “It is traditional, but it’s not compulsory.”

Katniss looked warily at Peeta but he had smoothed his face into the carefully bland expression he wore around strangers. All the ease of the evening evaporated for her in an instant.

“Well, if there’s going to be any kissing,” Peeta said eventually, “I think we need to be fair.”

He took Prim’s hand carefully in his and bent over to place a kiss gently across the back of her fingers.

“Happy new year, Prim,” he said and she grinned at him. “Some traditions are worth maintaining.”

He stepped towards their mother and she held out her hand in expectation, smiling warmly, if slightly nervously, at him.

“Happy new year, Mrs Everdeen.”

“And to you, Peeta,” she said softly.

Peeta straightened up and released her hand, turning to Katniss with a questioning look. She raised her chin in defiance and stepped closer to him.

“Happy new year, Peeta,” she said, before leaning forward to kiss him gently on the lips. She heard his quick intake of breath and Prim’s small sound of excitement before her mother hushed her. Peeta parted his lips slightly and grasped her hand in his, and Katniss allowed herself one moment to pretend. _This is it._

Peeta leaned back and smiled ruefully at her.

“Happy new year, Katniss.”

_This is how it could be_.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read/leave kudos/comment. I really appreciate it!


End file.
